Prices for Caspian oil grades have soared in the Mediterranean market this week, as traders look for alternatives in an increasingly tight market following the suspension of oil production in Libya, five traders told Reuters.

Libya’s oil blockade started earlier this week amid a conflict between eastern and western authorities over the replacement of the central bank governor.

The absence of Libyan supply has supported prices of Caspian barrels, which are of a similar quality.

Discounts for Kazakh CPC Blend narrowed to less than 30 cents per barrel to dated Brent, the traders said. The grade normally trades at wider discount to the benchmark, reaching close to minus $2 per barrel earlier this month.

Two of the traders said that there were several offers of CPC Blend oil cargoes at a premium to dated Brent, but no deals have yet been heard at such levels.

Premiums for Azeri BTC firmed above $4 per barrel and were moving towards $4.50 from around $2 per barrel early this month, the traders said.

CPC Blend light oil is mostly sourced by Kazakh oil producers and loaded from Russia’s Black Sea port of Yuzhnaya Ozereyevka.

Azeri BTC is mostly sourced from Azerbaijan’s oil fields and supplied via the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline for loading at Turkey’s Ceyhan port.

CPC Blend differentials are also supported by the expectation of lower than normal exports of the grade during the autumn months due to planned maintenance at the giant Kashagan oil field.

CPC Blend exports will reach around 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd) in September, three trade sources familiar with the matter told Reuters, but could decline in October.
Source: Reuters (Reporting by Reuters in Moscow and Robert Harvey in LONDON; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)